title: Carnitine levels in patients with chronic rheumatic heart disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Carnitine, a small aminoacid derivative plays a major role in fatty acid oxidation. Myocardial carnitine deficiency may cause malfunction of the heart. Rheumatic valvular heart disease can be associated with myocardial dysfunction. We have investigated myocardial and plasma-free carnitine levels in patients with chronic rheumatic heart disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eleven patients with chronic rheumatic heart disease requiring valve replacement were selected for study. Ten patients with no cardiac failure, myocardial wall motion abnormalities and myocardial infarction and for whom coronary bypass surgery was planned were selected as the control group. Carnitine levels of myocardial tissue obtained from the right atrium and plasma during the operation were evaluated using spectrophotometric method. Myocardial-free carnitine levels expressed as mumol/g (dry weight) were determined according to Ceberblad and Lindstedt technique.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Myocardial-free carnitine levels in patients were found to be 0.72 +/- 0.37 mumol/g (dry weight) in comparison with 1.44 +/- 1.03 mumol/g (dry weight) in the control group. Myocardial-free carnitine levels in patients were statistically decreased when compared to control group. Plasma-free carnitine levels in patients were 80.91 +/- 28.22 mumol/L and 89.52 +/- 48.21 mumol/L in the control group, respectively. There was no significant difference between plasma-free carnitine levels of the groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In our study, myocardial-free carnitine levels were decreased while plasma-free carnitine levels were normal in patient with chronic rheumatic heart disease.
authors.affiliation: Erciyes University Medical Faculty, Department of Biochemistry, Kayseri, Türkiye.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Narin
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Narin
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Andaç
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ergin
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Coşkun
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ustdal
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ceyran
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002331:Carnitine / Q000378:metabolism*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012214:Rheumatic Heart Disease / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002331:Carnitine